Days of Our Lives Round Table: Who Kidnapped Ciara?

Who kidnapped Ciara? Was Eli out of line with Hope? And will Jack use Haley’s secret to help him win the election?

Our TV Fanatics Jack Ori and Christine Orlando are joined by Wendylou and Mikey from MyHourglass a Days of Our Lives fan forum to debate whether Jack will betray JJ, Chloe’s next romance, if Jennifer needs to back off, Ciara’s latest predicament and more…

If JJ shares Haley’s secret with Jack, will he intentionally betray his son and use it to help him become the next mayor of Salem?

Wendylou: I'm afraid he will and that dawned on me half way through their scenes earlier this week. That's a shame too because I really enjoy them together and I was so glad to see Jack show up at JJ's door as a place of refuge.

I'm enjoying watching them develop or re-develop their father/son relationship as two adults. It will be sad to see Jack blow that to smithereens. I imagine JJ will feel very betrayed.

Mikey: I think it will appear that Jack intentionally betrayed JJ, or that's how it will seem to JJ, but it will be more nuanced than that. Perhaps Eve gets her hands on that information and uses it without Jack's knowledge/consent.

They've built up the Jack/JJ bond nicely, so I'm assuming they've done that in order to maximize the drama here.

Jack: I don't think he will intentionally betray JJ but I think he will stupidly share this secret with Eve who will be all too happy to do so. I hope it doesn't ruin the special relationship that JJ and Jack have always had and seem to still have.

Christine: I don’t think Jack will do it, or at least I hope not, but I think the information will get out and JJ will think his father betrayed him. My bet is that Eve will use it, and I can only hope that it causes a serious rift between Jack and Eve.

Is Jennifer coming on too strong with Jack or should she use all of her resources to get him away from Eve?

Wendylou: Yes to both actually. I think she is coming on too strong with Jack in person. I get that it must be difficult to hold back, especially with Skeevy Eveie (that's payback for nosy Jennifer Rosie) taunting her all the time but she's clearly making Jack uncomfortable and maybe even pushing him away.

Jenn SHOULD be using all of her resources to get Jack back to normal and away from Eve but she needs to be a bit slick about it and maybe not always let him know she's doing it.

Mikey: I wouldn't say she's coming on too strong, but since she's kind of hitting a wall, she probably needs to come at this from a different angle. Begging and pleading with Jack to remember and telling him how horrible Eve is doesn't seem to be doing the trick.

If I could sit Jen down, I'd tell her: a) stop making your hair so white-blonde, and b) try and get this Jack to fall in love with you in the here-and-now. He clearly has admiration for her already, so that doesn't seem impossible.

Jack: Jennifer was right to walk away at this point. Pushing Jack to get away from Eve just pushes Jack and Eve closer together. What she needs to do is investigate Eve herself and get proof that Eve hid the diary with the formula for the memory medicine from Jack.

Christine: She really needs to stop pushing so hard because it’s backfiring. Jennifer needs to use her reporter skills to take down Eve and try and get that formula for Jack. Also, perhaps she should step back a bit and let Jack come to her when he has questions or wants to talk. That worked for JJ!

Who would you like to see Chloe paired with romantically? Lucas, Brady, Stefan, someone else?

Wendylou: Well, my first choice will always be Philip but since he's not around...maybe Brady. I like their history and they have a nice friendship right now.

I've seen her with Lucas twice now and I just never felt anything for them. Her scenes with Stefan were fairly enjoyable but it's going to be a good long while before I'm over his creepy behavior with Abby/Gabby.

Mikey: I've long wanted a Broe redux, but I'm not sure there's a ton of story in re-pairing her and Brady, although that comes with the selling point that maybe Brady's love life wouldn't have to be the center of the show for a while.

I like her chemistry with Stefan and wish they'd paired them when he first showed up because Chloe's history with Vivian added some layers to that; now I have trouble seeing Stefan as anything other than a predator, so their scenes at Doug's Place had a creepy undercurrent.

I still expect them to try out Chloe with Kyle Lowder's Rex, though I'm not sure I see that going beyond some chemistry testing.

Jack: Nobody on canvas currently. I'm tired of her going through recycled relationships with exes and the idea of Chloe and Stefan is totally ridiculous and came out of nowhere.

Christine: I’m tired of Chloe’s recycled relationships too, which makes what they did with Stefan and Abigail all the more sad.

That storyline ruined Stefan for me which is a shame because he and Chloe really do seem to have chemistry and potentional, but I can’t get over Stefan taking advantage of a mentally ill woman. Chloe deserves much better than that.

Was Eli out of line questioning Hope about her relationship with Ted?

Wendylou: Was Eli the cheater out of line questioning Hope about her relationship with Ted? Yes. She's not a cheater. He and Rafe both are. Forget that she's his boss. They are family. So I'm okay with that. It's the hypocrisy that bothered me.

Mikey: It didn't strike me as being out-of-line in the sense that it was inappropriate. He even said he was asking as a relative, not a coworker. I know Rafe has confided in Eli a bit about what's going on, but it seems weird for Eli to assume that anything might be going on between Hope and Ted.

Like, the characters don't know that it's a soap and any time two characters start interacting like that, there's a good chance of a romantic pairing or at least a fling.

Jack: Yes, but it was fun to see Hope on the receiving end. I wish she'd realize that he was saying all the same things to her about Ted that she says to Ciara about Ben and that she was reacting the same way.

Christine: Eli annoyed the heck out of me. I wish Hope would have gone off on him, because he pretty much accused her of cheating with Ted, or planning to cheat. Maybe it’s because Eli and Rafe are cheaters that they expect the same behavior from others.

Who do you think kidnapped Ciara?

Wendylou: Well, I know who kidnapped Ciara so I don't think I should answer that. What I wonder is why. I'm a bit over Ciara being kidnapped by the way. Of course, I'm not at all into Ciara and her serial killer boyfriend so I've pretty much over her entirely.

Mikey: I accidentally read a spoiler revealing the kidnapper's identity -- which I actually think could be interesting if written well! -- but before that, I was kind of hoping it'd turn out to be Hope, going completely off the rails to "make a point" to Ciara about Ben.

I think I'm just desperate to see Hope completely torn down so they can start rebuilding her as the Hope I remember, rather than keeping in limbo as this brittle, morally compromised shell.

Jack: This kidnapping is totally illogical, but Clyde is the most logical suspect. Clyde is a powerful evil dude even when locked up (which he may or may not be at this point) and he definitely wouldn't be above getting revenge on Hope for messing with his boy.

Christine: I don’t know but I hate this storyline. They’ve been tormenting Ciara since she was a teenager and I find it disturbing.

What, if anything, disappointed you the most this week in Salem?

Wendylou: The Salem bedhoppers all telling anyone who would listen, often their PARENTS, about their bedhopping.

Really Sarah? Telling your mommy that you slept with someone under her roof shortly after being rejected by someone else you were trying to sleep with?

Really Rex? Telling your daddy about bedding your girlfriend's sister? Gross.

Also, the stupidity of Sonny and Will getting Leo's mom to town and then completely blowing any chance they have of getting something useful from her by revealing their plans to her and telling her EVERYTHING about what happened between the three of them. They have no idea what this woman will do with the info. So dumb.

Mikey: Eric and Rex. They're being so heavy-handed with Eric's moping over Sarah and everyone explaining over and over how she slept with Xander, etc. Between Eric sitting there like a storm cloud and Rex smirking about his romp with Sarah's sister, I just found their scenes so irritating -- and usually, I'm excited about any family scenes!

Jack: Ciara getting kidnapped was a random act of violence that was totally not necessary. Plus this is the third time adult Ciara has been kidnapped in the space of two years! She's rivaling Marlena for most often kidnapped, enough already.

Also, Hope trying to get Marlena to break confidentiality made me sick and I hope Marlena doesn't give in. Finally, Haley's backstory was contrived and ridiculous and the argument she had with JJ even more so.

Christine: Leo trying to force himself on any man with a pulse has become icky. Leo can be entertaining, but this joke is really overplayed to the point of being offensive.

What was your favorite quote, scene, or storyline this week on Days of Our Lives?

Wendylou: I really enjoyed Jack and JJ's scenes, specifically that Jack sought out JJ when he was feeling anxious. He runs from everyone else from his past life. I like that he's drawn to his son.

I also have to admit, Leo is growing on me. He's a bit oversexed but he's funny. I love the way he calls Xander Xandy. Oh, speaking of oversexed, Hope's Freudian slip about her "quickie" meeting with Ted made me giggle. Busted!

Mikey: I'm really enjoying Diana's arrival, and I absolutely loved the moment where she called John "Roman." Those plays on history always get me. I'm still curious how (and if) they justify the shift from the Diana Colville of the 80s into this version, but she feels like a fresh, interesting jolt of energy for the time being.

Jack: I loved Jack acknowledging he has a special connection with JJ that transcends his lack of memory. It's about time someone treated JJ as an important member of the family! Also, I'm loving Diana so far! I'm surprised by how much more interesting she's making the Leo story, which is my least favorite story right now.

Christine: Jack seeking out JJ was the highlight of the week. Also, Xander made me laugh when Eve got upset about him stealing Rolf’s diary and he called her out on it. “You nixed it just like I did and now it’s mine!”

Want to chat more about the happenings in Salem? Then check out Jack Ori’s Days of Our Lives review here at TV Fanatic.